2
- Ken:
-
You did a lot of fieldwork,/observing chimpanzees in the wild.
Are they in any way like humans?
- Jane:
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Chimps and humans have a lot in common,/sharing 98.6 percent of
DNA.
Their brains are very much like ours/and much of their behavior is like ours.
The members of a chimp family are very close,/often
helping one another.
They can feel sad, happy, afraid, and angry.
- Ken:
-
What about their character/—I mean,/are they friendly?
Are they cruel?
- Jane:
-
They are usually friendly,/but they can be
cruel,/just like humans.
- Ken:
-
Really?
- Jane:
-
The males sometimes attack chimps from another
community/to protect their territories.
But they can be very kind and loving too.
Once,/when he was about three years old,/a chimp called Mel lost his mother/and was left alone.
We all thought he’d die.
But, to our surprise,/a 12-year-old male chimp called Spindle/took care of him.
- Ken:
-
In what way?
- Jane:
- Mel would ride on his back/and share his nest at night. He shared his food/if Mel asked for it. Chimps can indeed be loving and caring.